Ride Transit Month 2021:
A Just Recovery Will Take Transit
Transit agencies have spent the last year and a half rising to meet the extraordinary challenge of providing service in ways that has kept riders as well as operators and staff safe during COVID. As more people begin to return to transit in the months ahead, what can we learn from the people who have been riding and operating transit throughout the pandemic? What new challenges will we face as a region, and what opportunities does this moment have to help us transform our thinking about our transportation system?
These are the questions we’ll explore during Ride Transit Month 2021: A Just Recovery Will Take Transit, from June 1-30. Join us at one of the official events or share your experience with transit during the pandemic at the hashtag #RideTransitMonth.
Program of Events
Ride Transit Month Kickoff
Share what your experience with transit during the pandemic. Have you been riding regularly? Once in a while? Haven’t been on transit since some time last year? We want your story. Share it using our story submission form below, or at the hashtag #RideTransitMonth.
Transit Talk: A Just Recovery Will Take Transit
This event has passed | June 16 — 1:00pm PT
Much of Washington’s workforce will return to the office in the coming months, while thousands of essential workers never stopped. How are transit agencies preparing to keep passengers safe and moving? Will transit “make a comeback,” and what would it mean if it doesn’t? Join this panel conversation to hear what agencies are doing, learn what to expect, and ask your questions.
Transit Trivia
June 23 — 4:00pm PT
Can you name all the transit agencies in Washington? Do you know a bus route number by it’s start and end location? Do you like prizes, fun, and meeting fellow transit nerds? If you answered yes to these questions, then Transit Trivia is for you!
Resilient Riders: Celebrating A Return to Ridership
June 30 — 4:30pm PT
Join Transportation Choices Coalition for our virtual Resilient Riders celebration as we bid farewell to this year’s Ride Transit Month!
Partner events
MASS Seattle City Council Position 9 Candidate Forum
June 22 — 5:30pm PT
Register for this event.
Overlake Village Walk & Talk
June 23 — 5:00pm PT
The Overlake Village Light Rail stop is set to open in 2023. Explore how it feels to access the new light rail station and the surrounding neighborhood by walking or rolling. By centering the experience of people we will create recommendations for safer streets and better access to transit. This is an in-person event! Register for this event.
Seattle's Commute Recovery Webinar
June 28 — 10:00am PT
Commute Seattle will host a webinar for Seattle businesses to learn about encouraging active commuting as office occupancy slowly creeps back and many people start making more trips throughout the city. In addition to presenting an employer’s insight, we will share data on COVID transmission rates while riding public transportation. Commute Seattle will spotlight how public transportation remains essential and fundamental in reaching our city and your organization’s sustainability goals. Register for this event.
Past events
Build Back Better With More Bus Service
June 1 — 1:00pm PT
Join NACTO for this panel conversation with experts from across the United States for a briefing on how federal support for transit operations can transform communities and how funding operations is critical to “Building Back Better” and meeting Biden’s equity, climate, and workforce goals. Register for this event.
Virtual Speed Networking with Young Professionals in Transportation
June 3 — 5:00pm PT
Join WTS Puget Sound and YPT Seattle as we put on a joint, fun virtual event for June! In a virtual setting, we will randomly pair you up with another attendee and you’ll have 5 minutes to introduce yourselves and get to know each other. We’ll continue the random pairings until the hour is up. Register for this event.
Beyond the Build: Cutting the Commute Carbon Footprint
June 8 — 5:00pm PT
As we begin to see a way out of restrictions, how does our region balance the pandemic’s impact on transportation with long-term environmental sustainability goals? Join local experts to learn more about how we’ll get around post-pandemic and the promise of a more sustainable transportation future. Register for this event.
Move All Seattle Sustainably (MASS) Mayoral Candidate Forum
June 16 — 5:30pm PT
Register for this event.
Wear your support
Orders are now open for our official Ride Transit Month shirts. Order yours now to show your support for transit throughout June and all year long.
Power the effort
If you agree that A Just Recovery Will Take Transit, support TCC’s Resilience and Recovery Fund so we can continue the work for more and better transportation choices for everyone in Washington.
Washington State Transit Highlights
Hear from transit agencies all over the state about how they have adapted in the last year, what programs they are excited about, and how you can get involved.
Link Transit services goes fare free
The Link Transit Board of Directors voted unanimously to continue fare free operations instituted as a safety precaution during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Walks with Wheels
The Mobility Specialist for Island Transit published a local trail guide called Hiking Close to Home. In April she organized an outing to test 3 trails for wheelchair accessibility and show how to get there by bus.
Summer Freedom: Kids Ride Free at SVT
For the third year in a row, Snoqualmie Valley Transportation runs the Summer Freedom program. All kids, 18 and under can ride the entire system for free.
Spokane Rides for Seniors
Through the Rides for Seniors program, people age 60 and over can use STA Paratransit vans to travel door-to-door to their destinations during the coronavirus emergency
Spokane Transit's COVID-19 Website
Spokane Transit created a dedicated website to act as the central hub for customers and staff to get updated COVID-19 information, including STA policy and impacts of national, state, and local regulations.
Share your highlights
We want to hear what your organization or agency is doing to create a just recovery. Share events, programs, policies, achievements, or projects you would like to share and promote as part of Ride Transit Month.
